2 NYC women arrested on charges they plotted to build bomb

(AP) Two women arrested on charges they plotted to wage violent jihad by building a homemade bomb are being held without bail after a brief appearance in federal court in New York.

The complaint unsealed Thursday names Noelle Velentzas and her former roommate, Asia Siddiqui, as the targets of an undercover investigation into a homegrown terror plot. The women answered "yes" in Brooklyn court to questions about whether they understood the charges against them.

Federal prosecutors say the women repeatedly expressed support for violent jihad during conversations with an undercover investigator wearing a wire.

Siddiqui's lawyer says she will enter a not-guilty plea and plans to fight the charges in court. Valentzas' attorney declined to comment.